RFLKT iPhone Powered Bike Computer

26Feb

Wahoo Fitness RFLKT Bike Computer

If you were to ask me to name my favorite cycling product of all-time, without any hesitation I would tell you about Cyclemeter by Abvio. I’ve used this iPhone app to record my last 20,000 miles or so of cycling. It is the most user-friendly iPhone cycling app you will find and it is easy to customize to suit your needs. It’s not that Cyclemeter is just better than the other cycling GPS apps, but it is so far advanced beyond the other apps that it doesn’t even belong in the same class. In all seriousness, it is worth buying an Apple iPhone if for no other reason than to use this app! I’d rather have the Cyclemeter/iPhone combination than any Garmin computer on the market. This iPhone app is only $4.99 and is available for download via iTunes.

Since I carry my iPhone in my back jersey pocket I am not able to see “real-time” statistics (speed, distance, cadence, heart rate, etc.). As a result, I’ve always had a second bike computer mounted on my handlebars so I could read it as I was cycling. Fortunately, Wahoo Fitness has recently introduced the RFLKT iPhone Powered Bike Computer and it is now one of my top two favorite cycling products of all time!

The RFLKT wirelessly reflects the information that is on your iPhone (hence the name) and displays that information on a compact unit that easily mounts on your handlebars or stem. What makes this bike computer so amazing is that it is completely customizable—you get to choose exactly what is displayed on every screen (and you can create a lot of screens), and you also get to choose the font size (from small to very large).

The RFLKT measures 2.4” long by 1.6” wide by 0.5” thick and weighs only two-ounces. It is powered by a replaceable coin cell battery and the wireless connectivity is made through a Bluetooth 4.0 connection to your iPhone. This computer has several mounting options, including quarter turn, so it is perfect for road bikes, mountain bikes, and cyclocross. I’ve used it in pouring rain and in temps as low as -12F and it hasn’t missed a beat!

The Wahoo Fitness RFLKT Bike Computer retails for $100 and is worth every cent! Wahoo Fitness also has cadence meters and heart rate monitors that tie into the Cyclemeter app (there are other apps available for use with the RFLKT unit, but I’d stick with Cyclemeter).

Note: In the photo above you will notice that my average speed for that bike ride was under 11 MPH. I was riding through 5″ of fresh snow on my Surly Necromancer Pugsley Fat Bike and anything over 8 MPH in deep snow is pretty good!

Every January I make my poor wife sit through a “lecture” on what to do when I die (I always assume she is going to live to be at least 100). I put together a 3-ring binder I affectionately call “The Book Of The Dead” and it contains all of the financial information she will need when I am gone — and instructions on how to get into all of my computer files (tax records, savings, investments, life insurance, etc.). I also gave her a password protected, highly encrypted, flash drive that has all of this information. So yes, I am prone to organize things a bit!

As I mentioned above, I can easily get a Century ride on a fully charged battery. However, it helps a LOT if you turn off WiFi and notifications. A few weeks ago I bought an external battery pack/phone case and can’t wait to try it out this summer.

Yes! And the Cyclemeter app not only keeps track of your distance for the ride, but it will also give you dozens of other options as well (distance for the week, month, year, plus amount of climbing, fastest speed, etc.). If you already have an iPhone this $5 app is the best app you will ever find for cycling!

Many thanks for sharing your thoughts on the CycleMeter app using the RFLKT. I have a RFLKT+ and I absolutly adore it, the best thing I have ever bought for my bike, as the + version also include an ANT+ bridge and thermo/Altimeter which the iPhone 5 natively lacks.
HOWEVER I upto this point been unable to find out how CM uses the RFLKT, for example Strava supports it but nowhere utilises it to the fullest. Its good to see that CM uses it much more effectively.
So as a user can you tailor the info it displays? I use Wahoo’s own app and didn’t want to buy CM’s in app purchase for Strava’s style of support (if you get my meaning!)

In CycleMeter it is incredibly easy to change your displays! you can have one screen or many! And you can also adjust the font size for EVERY field. While Wahoo makes a great piece of hardware, I prefer the software app from CycleMeter.

Also, the iPhone does record ascent and descent on your rides via CycleMeter — and it can be displayed on the RFLKT. However, I do miss not having a thermometer! On the other hand, since the regular RFLKT operates through smart Bluetooth, you don’t have to add a dongle onto your iPhone to make the connection.

Thanks for showing us how CycleMeter uses the RFLKT, I own the RFLKT+ but I could never find any info how the 2 units work together. I personally use Wahoo’s own app which is really comprehensive, but didn’t want to get CM in-app purchase if the support was pretty basic (like Strava if you’ve tried it…).
What kind of adjustments are available? Is it fixed or can you edit the screen and button layouts?
Cheers, Stoo.